WCOOP #12, $300+20 Pot-Limit Omaha: 'Mr. Shhhhhh' Silences the Field
Poker Stars' record-setting World Championship of Online Poker continued on Tuesday with a return to pot-limit Omaha, this time in Event #12, which attracted large numbers with its affordable $300+20 entry fee. 1,303 players meant a $390,900 prize pool, continuing this year's WCOOP tradition of shattering the pre-tourney guarantee, in this case a modest-by-comparison $200,000.
The early news here was the lengthiest final-table bubble battle yet, as ten players fought for the last nine spots. More than half of the players had their moments on the brink, as they struggled, five players each, at the final two tables, over dozens of hands. When the bubble finally popped, it claimed two victims at once --- 'Aurfish' looked like he was going to be out in tenth, but then 'LucKat', who started the hand lower in chips at the other table, had his two pairs plus a draw to a pot-splitting low fall to 'Nati Thunder''s made flush, when a river queen missed completing a low and gave LucKat an unusable, losing third pair. As a result, LucKat dropped down to tenth-place money, while Aurfish, who was technically knocked out moments earlier, moved up to ninth.
After being all-in himself, only minutes earlier, Moscow, Russia's 'hasumatus' made a rsh to the lead as the final table began, with $725,000 in chips. 'Nati Thunder' held second at $650,000, with '011180' not much farther back at $610,000, with the other five players strung out behind.
One of the very shortest stacks was 'katyrix,' who was forced to commit $30,000 of his remaining $74,000 into the big blind, and made the stand against a pre-flop hasumutas raise. katyrix had Jd-4s-Ts-2c, while hasumutas began with a solid 4d-Qs-Ah-Ac. The board of 7h-7s-2h-As-Kc never gave katyrix more than two outs, meaning katyrix was out himself, in eighth.
'Mr. Shhhhhhh' would pick up the next knockout, with Helsinki's 'OlliPolli', who had dodged elimination on several previous occasions. With the big blind approaching, OlliPolli's pot-sized pre-flop raise was for almost all his chips, and after 011180 called, Mr. Shhhhhhh made a pot-sized re-raise, moving all-in for more than $400,000. OlliPolli had only $5,000 behind and made the call, while 011180 pondered before dropping from the hand. Indeed, Mr. Shhhhhhh had a big starting hand, holding As-7c-Ah-4s, while OlliPolli had two-way chances, with 7h-5s-Kh-2s. The flop came 9d-2h-8s, creating opportunities for OlliPolli, and a king of spades on the turn temporarily gave OlliPolli two pairs for high. But another spade --- the seven --- dropped on the river, giving Mr. Shhhhhhh the nut-flush high and a better, A-4 low, making OlliPolli the sixth-place finisher.
As the shorter stacks dodged elimination, the top of the leaderboard shuffled as well, the natural product of blinds that were already high in relation to the stacks. 'kdhspyder' also surged to the top, then Nati Thunder, with Mr. Shhhhhhh and hasumutas also taking turns at the top. 'mrrain' held steady in fifth, with 011180 looking up at the rest. It was mrrain whose luck ran sour in the next big hand, when he and Nati Thunder raised and re-raised pre-flop to build a $770,000 pot. Both hands had solid six-handed starts, mrrain with 8h-7d-Ad-2h and Nati Thunder with 5d-Qc-As-2c. The final board displayed 9s-Ts-4s-Ac-Qs, giving Nati Thunder two pairs (aces and queens), with no low hand available, which sent mrrain to the virtual showers.
011180, the shortest stack, then took down three pots, the last on an all-in re-raise, putting all five players above $500,000, with Mr. Shhhhhhh over $850,000, somewhat higher than the rest. With the wild swings of Omaha hi/lo, it seemed a ripe time for a deal, and that's what ensued --- the five players each guaranteed themselves at least $33,500 and resumed action for the remaining $10,000 and champion's bracelet.
With the blinds at $20,000/$40,000, it wouldn't be long before the stacks would be forced to clash, and kdhspyder was the first player to top a million in chips, after scooping a $580,000 pot from 011180. Four hands later, Mr. Shhhhhhh also topped the million mark, and this hand saw Nati Thunder bow out in fifth. Nati Thunder was the short stack at $338,000, with Mr. Shhhhhh at more than twice that, and all the chips went in after a flop of Ah-6h-5d. Nati Thunder offered As-7c-Js-2d, while Mr. Shhhhhhh had 6s-7s-Kd-3d, meaning that the chop was in order, and it stayed that way after a deuce club fell on the turn. But the river was the six of clubs, making Mr. Shhhhhhh trip sixes for high, scooping the pot, and making Nati Thunder the fifth-place finisher.
A dozen or so hands elapsed before a huge scooped pot by Mr. Shhhhhhh put hasumutas on the brink. Mr. Shhhhhhh, who had dropped back to $513,000, ended up all-in against hasumutas, who had him covered by $110,000. Mr. Shhhhhhh had 3s-9h-6d-2d, while hasumutas held a powerful high-hand start of Ah-Ks-Qh-Ac. The board ran all Mr. Shhhhhhh's way, as it ended up 9s-4d-3d-9d-Qc, for a full house, nines over threes. For Mr. Shhhhhhh, the hand meant a jump from all-in to the lead.
hasumutas managed to double through once, but hit the wall just a few hands later, this time matched up against 011180. hasumutas's final $175,000 went in pre-flop when he made a pot-sized steal-raise from cutoff/under the gun with 6s-Tc-Ks-4h, but was then forced to call for his last few chips when 011180 re-raised with Jc-5c-Ac-Th. The board came 3d-8h-Kd-Jh-Qs, 011180 completed the ace-high straight, and three players remained.
kdhspyder was in third when the next big action occurred, sitting at $710,000, with Mr. Shhhhhhh at $1,118,000 and 011180 leading, at $1,360,000. With the blinds at $25,000/$50,000, Mr. Shhhhhhh raised from the button to $150,000, kdhspyder made the call from the small blind and 011180 re-raised to $600,000. Mr. Shhhhhhh folded, but kdhspyder again made the call, essentially committing himself to his pushing in last few chips on the turn. 011180 started with 6h-5c-Ac-Ah, while kdhspyder had 5s-4d-5d-2d. The flop was the improbable Ad-2c-3h, giving 011180 trip aces, but kdhspyder the nut-low straight. Needing the board to pair for the chop, 011180 saw his knockout chance disappear when a queen and jack came on turn and river. The two players swapped stacks and board positions, and 011800 became the player in greatest danger.
Only two hands later, that danger turned to reality. 011180 made the raise to $150,000 from the button, and kdhspyder made the call from the big blind. This time, the chips went in after the 5c-Jh-2h flop. 011180 held Jd-Ah-Ks-9s for top pair and the lead, but kdhspyder offered 4c-3h-Kd-6h, for a huge, multi-way draw. The draw missed when a diamond ten appeared on the turn, but another ten, the heart, arrived on the river, and that one filled kdhspyder's flush and sent 011180 to the rail in third.
kdhspyder began heads-up play with a better than 2:1 advantage, but Mr. Shhhhhhh won two huge pots to overtake kdhspyder and seal the win. On the first, kdhspyder was unable to call Mr. Shhhhhhh's $560,000 all-in river bet, after a board of Ks-4s-8h-9d-Td, and Mr. Shhhhhhh raked the $1.8 million pot. And two hands later, the last of kdhspyder's remaining $645,000 chips went into the pot following a flop of 2s-7s-8d; he turned up Ks-7c-Ac-Qs, and Mr. Shhhhhhh displayed 4d-6h-5d-Ad. The turn jack of diamonds missed both players, but a fateful river, the six of clubs, made Mr. Shhhhhhh's eight-high straight, completed a better low (7-6-4-2-A) and brought this exciting final table to a close.
WCOOP �C Event #12 - $300 Pot-Limit Omaha. Final Results.
*1st: ($56,080): Mr. Shhhhhhh
*2nd ($36,903): kdhspyder
*3rd ($35,351): 011180
*4th ($36,833): hasumutas
*5th ($33,644): Nati Thunder
6th ($15,088.74): mrrain
7th ($11,531.55): OlliPoli
8th ($8,599.80): katyrix
**9th ($5,472.60): Aurfish
* final payouts based on five-way deal
** not at final-table
